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December 2023, Issue 22
This December is a busy mess. I baked over a hundred cupcakes for various potlucks, shattered the back window of my car when I accidentally hit the garage door and missed deadlines I set for myself. I am grateful I don't have a cold (yet), unlike the rest of my work colleagues!
I just realized for episode 46 and 47 of The Artsy Raven podcast I didn't interview any writers but an actor and director. Actor Rivkah Reyes is probably the most famous person I've interviewed on the podcast so far and they were lovely to speak with!
May you all have a Merry Christmas and New Year. Hoping 2024 will be a better year for everyone!
Best,
The Artsy Raven Podcast Updates
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Episode 46 - Director Quentin Lee spoke to The Artsy Raven about his latest film, Last Summer of Nathan Lee about a terminally ill teen recruiting his best friend to document his remaining time before death. It was very interesting to hear Quentin's journey of ups and downs to become a filmmaker at a time when being queer was uncool. Sometimes the road to your destination is not a straight path!
Episode 47 - We spoke to actor Rivkah Reyes about what growing up was like as a famous child actor. Admittedly I have never seen the School of Rock movie they starred in with Jack Black. Recently they had a lead role in a LGBTQ+ Christmas movie, Holiday I Do and will be getting married soon! Best of luck to Rivkah!
Free Short Story - A Curse of Love
A Curse of Love was written shortly after my father died and it's a conversation between a daughter and father about a family curse harming males in the family. I set it during the holiday season which is a sad time for some as there are so many possibilities of what could have been if their loved ones were alive or available to spend time with.
The story is published on the Ricepaper Magazine website and available for free reading: https://ricepapermagazine.ca/2023/11/a-curse-of-love-by-jf-garrard/
Artsy Fun - Pokémon Card Maker
A really awesome last minute present for a Pokémon fan is a custom Pokémon card! Using this free online software, you can upload any graphic you want, create imaginative abilities and print out the card. It is also a great tool to entertain the kids for a few minutes. Mine likes to take snapshots of their stuffed animals to make superhero cards and use awful pictures of me to create villain cards! To access the site, click here: https://www.pokecard.net/
Free Book Giveaways and Promos
(click book title to access free ebook download link or book preview)
Spirit Notes Fading by Kris Bowser (click to download). A short collection of short stories Four short fantasy stories take eerie journeys through magic, music, and far-off places. A punk band struggles to save their show when it’s upstaged by the wail of a real banshee. A tired wanderer fights his impulse to run when he is hunted down with a magic photograph. Across impassable seas and beyond lonely cities, two wayfarers journey across a vast continent. An ocean-sick miner steals a submersible to escape from the oppressive priest caste of a deep-ocean settlement.
Flight of the Gazebo by Kent Silverhill (click to download). It isn’t easy when you find yourself lost and alone in a strange place. It’s even trickier when that place is a different world, and you have no idea how you got there. Drome’s top priority isn’t to figure that out. It’s to avoid getting himself killed. But his talent for making enemies as he flees the villainous courtiers who took him hostage, really isn’t helping. And then there’s the wizard. If only Drome hadn’t angered him too…So, is Drome in trouble? Yup. He’s screwed.
Tales of the Macabre, Vol. 1: Sixteen Stories of Creeping Horror by Newton Webb (click for preview). Newton’s macabre tales span continents, with sixteen stories from the 17th century to the distant future, from Nepal, through Europe and South Africa. Some stories contain elements of humour, love, and passion, but all are imbued with soul shattering terror.
Unbroken Strife: Rising Conflict by Nevyn McNamara (click to download). When alien meteorites crash across Earth, the global balance of power will change inexorably. An action-packed, sci-fi adventure story.
The Devil Take You by Mitchell Luth (click for review copy). The Devil Take You is an anthology of medieval horror comprising 14 tales set in the world Rome left behind. Join us in the plague-infested streets of London and the howling expanse of the Carpathian Steppes. Explore the once-hallowed halls of fortified monasteries and bear witness to the sacrilegious Vikings who would plunder them. From the macabre corpse collectors of Al-Waset to vicious highwaymen and their blasphemous secrets, The Devil Take You offers a delicious glimpse into the hellish world of the Middle Ages. Within these pages, life is fleeting, but death is never slow. Featuring tales by C.L. Werner, Coy Hall, Anya Leigh Josephs, Benedict Anning, Phil Keeling, Brent Salish, Amanda M. Blake, Stephanie Ellis, R. T. Wenzel, Morgan Melhuish, Gerald Jensen, Justin Fillmore, D. Thomas Minton, and Brian Crenshaw.
Oasis by Joan De La Haye (click to download). In a world devastated by solar flares, the surviving population has turned into flesh-craving zombies due to solar radiation. Only a few remain unaffected. Led by a family of civilians and a squad of battle-worn soldiers, they must reach the safety of a UN base called New Atlantis at the South Pole. But as they face relentless undead hordes, their journey becomes a race against time. Will they make it to the oasis alive or become part of the undead themselves?
NEODYMIUM SACRIFICE by Jen Finelli (click to download review copy). To save the galaxy from mind-control, a young freedom-fighter must break with his past, and an ex-soldier must escape her future. "...this intricately plotted outing ups the already sky-high stakes of Finelli’s turbulent space opera series, setting up the board for a bombastic finale to come." - Publisher's Weekly
Rox by M.E. Pickett (click here to download). Forced into a risky mission to the outer reaches of the solar system, Roxanne “Rox” Weaver is about to confront a horror from her past, and a threat to humanity’s future.
My Enemy's Secret Baby by Reyna Byrnee (click to download). He’s my Enemy, and I can’t stay away from him. But he’s also my Boss, and I have a Secret. If I’m not careful, he will ruin my life. Working with him will be dangerous and a stalker is out to get me. With nowhere to turn, Jack may be my only saving grace. One night is all it takes; Now I have a secret-Two Blue Lines.
Thread of Lies by Mikhail Gladkikh (click to download). A college professor is a primary suspect in a murder investigation at the ski resort. Detective Billy Crow, a relic of the mountains, is leading the case. Can they find the culprit and unravel the digital thread?
John Price Love Lost in Time by Merick N.H. Ulrik (click for preview). John Price and Company travel back in time to 1969. Only to find Malacients, sadistic predatorial aliens, have already begun infiltrating society and have set up a base on the dark side of the moon. The situation gets’s worse… something separate John and his lovely ladies are lost in time…John will need all his wits, cybernetic enhancements, and luck to survive. Will he be able to reconnect with his lost loves, or are they lost forever? How can he once and for all stop the Malacients?
Group book promos
Horror Giveaway December! Download these free eBooks by January 16th! Click here to download
Death from Space eBooks on Kindle Unlimited, this promotion ends January 1st! Click here for access
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